WRITE NOW! Workshop Podcast: Write a Book, Change the World with Kitty Bucholtz

Alessandra Torre is our guest today sharing her top 4 take-aways from just the marketing portion of the 2022 Inkers Con writers conference. (Not even her top 4 overall!) If you'd like to sign up for the conference, you can still access the digital version -- and Alessandra kindly gave us a $50 off coupon! Enter the code WNWPODCAST at Inkers Con to get your discount! Download the Author Assessment Worksheet today! A gift from Alessandra!

EPISODE 290TPodcast favorite Susan May Warren, author of the new novel Sundown, shares how she manages her time as she creates a book series. Research, plotting, writing, she's got a time block for each piece. Listen to her process so you can figure out how to hone your own. Learn more about Susie May and all of her books, including nonfiction books for writers, at https://www.susanmaywarren.com/Watch Kitty's free Masterclass series on writing at https://www.youtube.com/kittybucholtz for help on how to write more with less stress and more peace and joy. Available through December 31, 2022. Get $400 off the six-month Finish Your Book Group Coaching Program by using the coupon code "2022" through January 1, 2023! A great gift for yourself or another writer you love!

EPISODE 289Today's guest is Suzanne Woods Fisher, author of the new novel Anything But Plain. She shares a great presentation with ten things she learned during her writing career that she wants to pass on to you. You can find Suzanne at https://suzannewoodsfisher.com/

EPISODE 288EI'm wearing my "How to Spot a Hero" Spider-Man T-shirt as I record this episode. YOU are the hero! And you can be the person who is the hero to someone else! You can be the person who writes a book that changes people's lives. Even just one life changed would be worth our time. Are you willing to keep working at it and make the world a better place?

EPISODE 287TOur guest today is award-winning author Susan May Warren teaching us how to write a series.There are several kinds of series and first Susie May explains them all. Then she shows us how to write a compelling series that readers can't stop reading. Plus she gives us a fantastic tip that we can use to help readers jump into a longer series.Click below to get the wonderful handout Susie May gave us! And be sure to check out Sunrise, her latest book one in a series and one of the books we used for some of the examples, as well as Sunburst (June 7, 2022) and Sundown (Nov 1, 2022) to see how she puts a series together. (Also great books! I've read the first and preordered the others.)Building a Powerful Series handout

EPISODE 286EIt's the second quarter of the year -- how is your writing going? Where are you in meeting the goals you set for yourself a few months ago? Here are some tips for getting more done this quarter...and maybe more done for the rest of the year! Good luck!

EPISODE 285TIn 2022, we're taking a direction change with the podcast and, instead of bringing you 50+ interviews during the year, you'll get 8-10 full-on teaching episodes. These are sessions you normally could only hear at a writers conference, about an hour long and full of practical advice to improve your writing and advance your career.Today's guest teacher is best-selling historical author Amanda Cabot. Amanda explains about the different kinds of historical fiction with tips on how to write them well. Her latest novel, The Spark of Love, just released on March 1 and is available everywhere books are sold including Baker Book House (https://bakerbookhouse.com/products/381270, where you can find discounted pricing on paperbacks). Learn more about Amanda and her books at her website (http://www.amandacabot.com/).

EPISODE 284TWhen there's so much going on in the world, it can be easy to feel like there's little to nothing you can do to make a difference. But there are lots of things that you could do. In this episode I mentioned that City Hearts Sweden (https://www.cityheartssweden.org/ukraine) is doing a lot to help Ukrainians near the border and those seeking refuge in Sweden. I also noted that there are lots of organizations near you, wherever you live, that could use some help. For example, my sister runs a 501(c)3 charity in Michigan called CHUM Therapeutic Riding. During the pandemic, they couldn't always be open for their clients but the horses still have to eat every day. If you'd like to help feed a horse, you could donate to CHUM (https://www.chumtherapy.net/donationrider-fees), or find an organization closer to where you live or that matches your passions. Helping others -- whether physically, financially, or emotionally -- helps us to feel better about the things we can't control. And keep writing! Your book could make a difference in the world!

EPISODE 283EThe wonderful thing about stories -- whether reading or writing or listening to them or watching them -- is that they help us to know ourselves. We learn more about who we want to be, who we don't want to be, what makes us laugh and what makes us angry. I encourage you to find more of yourself this year in your writing and reading!Mentioned in the show:Switch on Your Brain by Dr. Caroline LeafLong Story Short on NetflixAuthor Reading Room -- a monthly free virtual live event where readers can listen to authors read from their work and then ask them questions. Join us!

EPISODE 282EIn today's Encouraging Words episode, I share my experience of the first time I ran in the snow just last month. It was cold and wet and more miserable than fun, but I did it. And it reminded me of how I can look at the harder parts of my writing life and see how I can tweak my attitude to make it through -- and even enjoy it. I hope this helps you find a similar parallel in your own life to talk yourself through the harder areas and on to accomplishment!

EPISODE 281IToday's guest is Olivia Bowser, founder and CEO of Liberate, the first mental fitness studio.Liv explains to us how Liberate began and what it offers to help people develop and maintain mental wellness. The great thing about Liberate is that they work with both individuals and companies, in person and online. Check out their offerings and sign up for the 7-day free trial. Let's make 2022 our best year for mental health!Learn more about Liberate at https://www.liberatestudio.com/.

EPISODE 280IToday's guest is Lynn Bohart, writing teacher and author of the cozy mystery series, Old Maids of Mercer Island.Lynn shares her experiences on many of the ways she leveraged her writing skills to get more work and make money quicker while she continued writing her book series. Great ideas that will spark your imagination for things you can do as well, whether you are also moving into retirement or you're busy and only have time for small projects. We also talk about her mystery series -- fun times!Learn more about Lynn and her books at https://www.lynnbohart-author.com/, and follow her on LinkedIn, Facebook, or wherever you like to connect.

EPISODE 279IToday's guest is Sarah Santacroce, author of Marketing Like We're Human and Selling Like We're Human, and host of the Humane Marketing podcast. As a ‘Hippie turned Business Coach’, Sarah works with heart-centered entrepreneurs to question their assumptions when it comes to marketing and give them permission to market their business their way, the gentle way!We discuss Sarah's approach to marketing and how it differs from the traditional and online marketing styles, and talk about how the gentle marketing approach can work for writers.Download Sarah's free 1-Page Marketing Plan at https://humane.marketing/1page. Learn more about her at https://sarahsantacroce.com/ and https://humane.marketing/https://humane.marketing/humane-marketing-podcast/https://humane.marketing/book1https://humane.marketing/book2

EPISODE 278EIn this month's Encouraging Words episode, I talk about how I've been looking at Susan May Warren's Values-Based Planning from episode 276 to decide on my priorities for 2022. After struggling with the idea that I don't want to stop doing things I love and am good at, I finally decided that I needed to let some things go - at least for now - because I'm not doing the work that is most important to me. As of January 2022, the podcast will be on semi-hiatus, meaning I'll still do the monthly Encouraging Words episodes, and I'll also have guest episodes at irregular intervals. This will free up an enormous amount of time for me to get back to focusing on my first love, writing. :-)I hope my candid discussion on how I came to this decision helps you as you think back on the last year or two and ask yourself what worked, what didn't, and how you can plan next year based on the things you find most important in your life.

EPISODE 277IToday's guest is mystery writer Amy S. Peele talking to us about writing her medical murder mysteries, Cut and Match. Amy tells us the advice that mystery writer Michael Connelly gave her that moved her career forward, and she shares with us her journey -- and tips! -- as she began writing while still working a very demanding career with long hours. We also talk about organ donation, a prime topic in her two mystery novels, and how you can make sure that your wishes in this matter are followed. If you have an iPhone, you can sign up for donation in the United States using the Health app. It connects to Donate Life America. Learn more about Amy and her books at her website, https://amyspeele.com/. Follow her on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/amy.s.peele, Twitter https://twitter.com/amy_peele, Instagram https://www.instagram.com/amypeele/, and LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-s-peele-b815801b/.

EPISODE 276IBestselling author Susan May Warren joins us again to help writers and other creatives understand how to plan a new year of accomplishments in a way that works best for each one of us, individually. She tells us how she developed My Brilliant Writing Planner and explains the many ways we can use it to have a more creative and productive and joyful year. The planner is not a compilation of weekly To Do lists, she says, but a way of choosing what is most important to you based on your own values in life.Learn more about My Brilliant Writing Planner and get one of your own at https://www.mybrilliantwritingplanner.com/. Go to Novel Academy to find out about all the resources Susie May has for writers including courses and a membership group, https://novel.academy/. And at her writer's website, you can check out all of her books across multiple genres, including the new series under the David James Warren pen name, https://www.susanmaywarren.com/. Follow her on social media including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

EPISODE 275IAuthor Natalie Walters returns to the show today to talk about how she finds ways to use some of the material that ends up being cut from a book, or reuse characters she created that never ended up in a published book. Natalie's new book, Lights Out, is a romantic suspense novel about a CIA analyst who brings together intelligence officers from around the world to combat global terrorism -- and one of them goes missing.When the book she set in Egypt, written while she lived there, didn't sell, Natalie found lots of ideas about how we can make sure nothing we create is wasted. She has moved characters to another story, used settings somewhere else, given her readers snippets of deleted scenes, and more. Learn more about Natalie and her books at her website https://www.nataliewalterswriter.com/ and follow her on Facebook and Instagram (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100041917969557 and https://www.instagram.com/nataliewalters_writer/).And if you're interested in working with Kitty to finish your book, email her at kitty AT kittybucholtz DOT com to schedule a time to talk about what you'd like to accomplish and how she can help.

EPISODE 274IToday's guest is Dr Sunil Raheja, author of Dancing with Wisdom: A Sacred Quest to Restore Meaning, Purpose and Fun to Your Life and Work. He's also the host of the Dancing with Wisdom podcast, and a psychiatrist and executive coach."For the really important decisions in life, there’s no textbook that’s going to give you the answers," Dr Sunil tells us. He shares how he got started on his journey to understand how life works, and he gives us many tips about what he's found.He intersperses in the story of the book the writing of the book as well -- what he had to give up to finish it, what his writing coach taught him, and how much more time and work he ended up putting into it than he expected.To learn more about Dr Sunil's work, and to get the first chapter of Dancing with Wisdom for free, visit his website https://drsunil.com/.For more information about working with Kitty to finish writing your book, sign up for a free strategy session on her website: https://www.writenowworkshop.com/writingcoach/

EPISODE 273IToday's guest is attorney Kathryn Goldman, founder of Creative Law Center online.This is a fascinating and informative look into copyright, copyright registration, fair use, public domain, the difference between giving credit and getting permission when using someone else's work, and so much more. SoonKathryn also pointed listeners to an article on her site about fair use (https://creativelawcenter.com/fair-use-guidelines/), a chart on Cornell University's site about determining public domain works (https://copyright.cornell.edu/publicdomain), an article about museums who give away images of public domain works (https://creativelawcenter.com/museums-open-access-images/), and She also shares several reasons why you should register your work with the U.S. Copyright Office (https://www.copyright.gov/registration/).She also shares several reasons why you should register your work with the U.S. Copyright Office (https://www.copyright.gov/registration/). And one of them, she says, is that soon the Copyright Claims Board will open as an alternative to going to federal court for copyright disputes so long as you have registered the disputed item.Find Kathryn and her many tools and resources for writers at Creative Law Center (https://creativelawcenter.com/). There you'll find lots of workshops, including the recorded "How to Minimize Risk When Writing Memoir" and the upcoming "Publishing Services: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" live on Wednesday, November 17, 2021. You can also join the Business and Legal Resources Membership for Entrepreneurs and Creatives and get access to forms, contracts, workshops, and more (https://creativelawcenter.com/register/membership-signup/).

EPISODE 272EIn this Encouraging Words episode, I talk about the fun benefits you can get out of writing during National Novel Writing Month and using the NaNoWriMo.org website. I also mention Rachel Aaron's fabulous book for writing faster, 2K to 10K: Writing Faster, Writing Better, and Writing More of What You Love, and other tips I've used to write more words during this month. Even just having a grateful, positive attitude will help you write more (and possibly better).